Cleveland Browns notes: Mike Pettine lauds Michael Sam

INDIANAPOLIS — The group of reporters around Missouri defensive end Michael Sam on Feb. 22 was the biggest of the 2014 NFL Scouting Combine.
On Feb. 9, Sam announced he is gay.
“I wish you guys would just say, ‘Michael Sam, how’s football going? How’s training going?’ ” he said. “I would love for you to ask me that question. But it is what it is. And I just wish you guys would just see me as Michael Sam the football player instead of Michael Sam the gay football player.”
Sam is projected as a fourth-round pick. Reporters were not 10 deep around the podium he occupied because of his skills as a football player.
Sam was asked how he would handle harassment in an NFL locker room.
“If someone wants to call me a name, I’ll have a conversation with that guy and hopefully it won’t lead to anything else,” Sam said.
Browns coach Mike Pettine supports Sam’s decision to announce his sexuality.
“I just think in today’s culture … I applaud what he did,” Pettine said. “In the NFL, it’s a results business. Can Michael Sam help the Cleveland Browns win? If he can, then there’s a good chance he’ll be a part of our football team.”
Sam was not asked what teams he has met with at the combine.Watkins and Gordon?
The Browns haven’t met with Louisville quarterback Teddy Bridgewater yet, but they have met with Clemson wide receiver Sammy Watkins. They could take him with the fourth overall pick and pair him with Josh Gordon. Watkins likes the idea.
“For me, Josh Gordon is one of the top receivers in the NFL,” Watkins said on Feb. 22.
“He led receivers with 1,700 yards (1,646 actually). I’d kind of take some pressure off him with double coverage and them flipping the coverage to his side. It would become a nightmare for defenses to match up with us.”
Watkins said it would be “a great decision” if the Browns drafted him. He caught 101 for 1,464 yards and 12 touchdowns in 2013.Pettine on Jackson
Pettine met with linebacker D’Qwell Jackson recently and concluded Jackson is “special.” But Pettine would not say whether Jackson will be with the Browns next season. Jackson is due a $4.1 million bonus in March.
“He came into town,” Pettine said. “He and I sat down and had a great meeting. It’s easy to see why he’s so highly thought of. The leadership ability and the intangibles to me are off the chart. He’s currently under contract. I’m not going to speak on the future of that contract. We’ll make that decision in the coming weeks.”
Pettine said the Browns won’t be pigeonholed as a 4-3 defense or a 3-4 defense. Jackson and Craig Robertson were the starting inside linebackers in the 3-4 scheme the Browns used in 2013.
If Jackson is not retained, it could mean finding two inside linebackers if the Browns stick with a 3-4.
“We’re not limited in the type of football player we can take,” Pettine said. “If there’s a guy that’s an explosive athlete that can make plays for us defensively, then we’ll find a spot for him.
“We’ll fit the system to the players, not the players to the system. We won’t have guys who we’ll circle on the board and say, ‘Well, he’s not really a fit for us schematically.’ If he’s an outstanding player that can be productive in this league, we’ll find a home for him.”